Rock in Opposition

Rock in Opposition (RIO) designates a collective of avant-garde rock groups launched at a 1978 London festival organised by *Henry Cow*, and the challenging music they and their successors made. United by an anti-commercial ethos and a commitment to independent production, the original groups, among them *Univers Zero*, *Samla Mammas Manna*, *Etron Fou Leloublan* and *Stormy Six*, merged complex, classical-inspired composition and free jazz improvisation with rock instrumentation augmented by bassoon, cello and violin. Intricate arrangements, shifting metres and dissonance replaced conventional song structures. RIO's lasting impact was an international network for experimental rock rather than commercial success.